Spain v Ireland Tip

One of the best midfielders in the world looked close to top form against Italy.

Spain offer us an interesting dilemma at the moment. Clearly one of the strongest teams in the tournament, they pass the ball around beautifully but it really isn’t clear who will provide the end product. Vicente del Bosque raised eyebrows with what was perceived as a 4-6-0 formation against Italy. When Torres was brought on, he looked unconvincing.

But after watching both opening group matches in Group C, it’s frankly inconceivable that Ireland can stop the champions from recording their first win on Thursday evening. But trying to find a hint of value when backing the seemingly inevitable, is tricky.

My recommendation is Andres Iniesta for Man of the Match at a best price of 6/1 with PaddyPower. Winner of the award against the Azzuri, according to UEFA.com, he is the player looking most likely to run the show.

He was involved all the best things La Roja did and even had five shots on goal himself as the Spanish pushed hard for three points. It’s been reported that the scorer of the winning strike in the 2010 World Cup entered that tournament and Euro 2008 with some injury problems. Hard to believe given his outstanding performance levels.

He is now at his physical peak and at 28-years-old, he could be the main man in 2012. It’s tempting to take him on in the anytime goalscorer market at a best price of 16/5 (Sportingbet). But the Barca star is more a creator than a finisher, so the Man of the Match market allows us to benefit from his all-round genius.